R.I.P. – ‘Pioneer Cabin’ Sequoia Tree

As reported by East County Today,

The Pioneer Cabin Tree, one of California’s oldest tourist attractions and a beloved specimen of a rare California native species, fell Sunday in Calaveras Big Trees State Park.

A combination of trunk and root decay and storm water runoff appears to have brought the giant sequoia down at its base, shattering it and a nearby cedar tree. No one was hurt. The trees fell when the trail to the giant sequoia was closed.

Cats – No ‘Effing Pussy Men Here

Appropriated from the Caveman Circus, “Taxidermist Carl Akeley posing with the leopard he killed with his bare hands after it attacked him, 1896″.

 Not wanting to end up stuffing the cat with his own entrails, Akeley raised his rifle and fired twice, but he missed both times. On his third shot, the bullet grazed the leopard, sending the feline into a frenzy. Enranged, the big cat screamed and charged the American, all teeth and bad attitude, ready to take his revenge.

Terrified out of his mind, Akeley pulled the trigger a fourth time, only to realize that he was out of bullets. Downright desperate, Akeley tried to flee, loading cartridges into his rifle as he ran. Working the bolt, he turned to shoot, only to see the leopard flying through the air, fangs bared. Fortunately, Akeley’s first shot had wounded one of the cat’s back paws. Thanks to the bullet, the leopard’s jump was a bit off, giving Akeley enough time to throw up his hands. The cat sank its jaws into the man’s forearm, and the two started wrestling back and forth, fighting for their lives. Eventually, the man and cat grew weak and tumbled to the ground. Finally, he managed to strangle the leopard with his left hand while ramming his right arm down the leopard’s throat. 

PSA – Help Keep Our Wildlife Friends Warm

Cooking temperatures for our Wild Buddies:

Game Temperature
Chops, steaks and roasts (deer, elk, moose, caribou/reindeer, antelope and pronghorn)
Well done 74°C (165°F)
Ground meat
Ground meat and meat mixtures 74°C (165°F)
Ground venison and sausage 74°C (165°F)
Large game
Bear, bison, musk-ox, walrus, etc. 74°C (165°F)
Small game
Rabbit, muskrat, beaver, etc. 74°C (165°F)
Game birds/waterfowl (for example, wild turkey, duck, goose, partridge and pheasant)
Whole 82°C (180°F)
Breasts and roasts 74°C (165°F)
Thighs, wings 74°C (165°F)
Stuffing (cooked alone or in bird) 74°C (165°F)

 

**Provided by the Government of Canada – They know wild.

Aesop’s Newest Fable – The Squirrel, the Ant, and the Grasshopper

One bright day in late autumn a family of Ants were bustling about in the warm sunshine, drying out the grain they had stored up during the summer, when a starving Grasshopper, his fiddle under his arm, came up and humbly begged for a bite to eat.

Not to be outdone, the pesky squirrel ambling by decided to jump for the grain bin and help himself.  He missed and hung himself for the winter by his very ownliest nuts.  Ouch!  You can figure out the moral of this story for yourself.

The Æsop for Children – “The Ants & the Grasshopper